1. Technical Field
This invention relates in general to animal surgical ligaturing and restraining devices, and in particular to the kind characterized by an elongated tubular handle having at one end a noose operable from the other end of the handle. The invention is adapted for capturing and restraining small animals, and for restricting the flow of blood in the limbs as a tourniquet.
2. Description of Prior Art
In the field of medical and veterinary practice, it is often necessary to restrain the various members of an animal during treatment. Certain surgical procedures require the restriction of blood flow in the patient's limbs or legs. For these purposes, restraining devices such as snares and mouth muzzles, and ligaturing devices such as tourniquets are utilized.
Prior art restraining and ligaturing devices of the kinds similar to the present invention are generally comprised of a tubular body member having at the front end a noose which is operable from the rear end of the body. The noose is generally part of a flexible strap or cable, the cable running through the inside of the body, and extending out of the body's rear end. To apply, the noose is placed over and around the object, and is tightened by pulling on the cable extending out of the rear end of the body. To maintain the noose in its tightened state, various movable parts which are commonly located inside the body, are utilized to grip onto the cable tightly.
There is a wide variety of animal snares and restraining devices of the general class to which the present invention pertains. The snares are specifically designed to snare or capture an animal by the head. They are generally not suitable for use on the animal's jaw as a muzzle. The existing ligaturing devices such as tourniquets for stopping the flow of blood in the limbs are inadequate for use either as a muzzle or a snare. No known prior art device exist, which is versatile enough to be used for restraining the head or the mouth of an animal, and at the same time, effective as a tourniquet.
The devices described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,292,591 to F. A. Wood, U.S. Pat. No. 3,319,609 to G. C. Pickard et al, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,088,449 to L. Lamb Sr. et al, all have movable locking mechanisms located inside the body member. U.S. Pat. No. 1,167,223 to O. E. Sheidler describes a device which requires the attachment of the noose cable to a chain whose movable links are fitted into a slot in the tubular body as locking means. U.S. Pat. No. 2,488,962 to D. F. Christoffer describes a device which utilizes a studded rod inside the tubular body to lock the noose in place. These known prior art snares which are generally bulky and heavy, are ineffective for ligaturing purposes in stopping the flow of blood in the limb. The noose cables utilized are flexible but inelastic, and therefore cannot act as a tensioning ligature member.
The known prior art tourniquets of the present type described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,532,299 to A. H. Braecklein, U.S. Pat. No. 4,561,437 to H. Kirchner, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,084,062 to M. E. Sturm, generally comprise of a body member, at one end of the body is a looped flexible strap, the strap extends out of the other end of the body. Locking mechanisms located inside the body secure the noose in place after being tightened by pulling at the strap extending out of the body. These tourniquets are specifically designed for ligaturing a patient's limb, and are not suitable for restraining an animal, either by its head or its mouth. These known devices lack a substantial elongated handle which is an important requirement in the protection of a user's hand from the animal being restrained. Also the movable locking mechanisms inside the body are generally not strong enough to withstand the violent struggles of most restrained animals.
All these known prior art devices share a common feature. The locking means is comprised of movable parts which are separate and distinct from the noose strap and the body member. The obvious disadvantage of utilizing movable mechanical parts to lock the noose strap is that the parts can malfunction, thereby causing reliability problems. Additionally, the movable parts also add cost and weight to the manufacture. Therefore it is desirable to have a reliable and economical ligaturing and restraining device which requires no movable locking parts, other than the noose strap and the body member.